Dean Smith’s Aston Villa welcome Southampton to Villa Park this weekend with two strikers who haven’t been delivering in the Premier League.
Sky Sports pundit Charlie Nicholas has given his thoughts on Aston Villa’s upcoming Premier League meeting with Southampton at Villa Park, going into detail about how he’d solve the current conundrum regarding Wesley Moraes and Jonathan Kodjia (Sky Sports News).
Although Dean Smith’s charges are the top scorers in the bottom half of the Premier League table, their number nine has flattered to deceive for much of the season, with just four league goals to his name and none in the last nine league fixtures.
Kodjia, meanwhile, has been a spectator for much of Villa’s top-flight campaign, injuries restricting him to just 41 minutes of action in the league and not a single start, as well as five league games spent entirely on the bench.
The 30-year-old did claim a brace in the League Cup win over Liverpool – and Wesley also netted – but given the Reds side was made up mostly of inexperienced youngsters, there isn’t much to go on in terms of who to select to take on three senior teams doggedly fighting for their top-flight lives in Villa’s upcoming fixtures.
“Wesley has to be the target man as that is how he wants to work, but he does not actually link up with the play,” Nicholas told Sky Sports News. “Because of that you have Jonathan Kodjia, who scored twice in the week, but he does not want to run either.
“What do you do here? Wesley scored at the death against Liverpool in the Carabao Cup and he is more suited to them. I would still start Kodjia and bring the more energetic and determined Wesley off the bench with 20 minutes to go.”
Villa and Southampton are level on 15 points having both lost 10 from their opening 17 matches, but the Saints occupy the final relegation spot, being 11 goals worse off than the Villans.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
